


Promise

by Ahtai



Series: Learning to Live (Again) [1]
Category: Cyberpunk 2077 (Video Game)
Genre: Gen, Post-Canon, Spoilers
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-17
Updated: 2020-12-17
Packaged: 2021-03-11 04:33:36
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,831
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28129185
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Ahtai/pseuds/Ahtai
Summary: SPOILERS FOR ENDING"Body's yours." V says after what feels like an eternity of silence, "Under one condition.""And what's that?""That you don't fuck over the people I care about."---In which Johnny Silverhand honors V's dying wish.
Relationships: Johnny Silverhand & V
Series: Learning to Live (Again) [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2063445
Comments: 15
Kudos: 147





	Promise

**Author's Note:**

> Hi I don't write often but I just got really sad after the endings... The epilogue was so unsatisfying for me that I had to write this. I also sort of mashed two endings together because I wanted my V to make the ultimate choice and not just have Johnny walk into the well with no input from V. 
> 
> So this is set in the ending where Johnny gets Rogue to help him with storming Arasaka Tower, and mixes in Panam's ending where V gets to make the choice.
> 
> Anyway ya here we go.

Waking up in V's body at first had been a nasty surprise. Weyland had just watched as he dragged himself out of the pool, chest heaving, coughing blood.

Was this how V had felt the entire time while housing him in his body? Johnny reminds himself to give the man a bit more credit as he forces himself to stand.

Then it hits him.

V's gone.

Gone for real, because it's Johnny in the front seat with the body feeling right, unlike just a few minutes ago when it felt like _V's body_ , rejecting his psyche with every ounce of strength it had left.

"Fuck..." He hisses. For someone who's went his whole life knowing what his next step was to be, he's feeling surprisingly lost.

\---------

"You stormed Arasaka Tower for me. I appreciate that. It's the best send off I could've asked for."

V's sitting in the chair, arms folded and leaning forward on the back of the chair, and Johnny could've laughed at how the tables have turned if they weren't in such a pickle.

"I'm not following." He grunts, annoyed at how V's smiling like nothing's wrong, "We're sendin' me off, not you."

"You heard her, Johnny. I don't have long to live, even if I get my body back." 

"We'll find a way. We'll figure something out, we did all this shit in less than a week, stormed Arasaka Tower in an evening, six months is practically forever for us."

V looks sad, and Johnny finds that he dislikes that look on him. No spark, no fire, he just looks tired, and he feels a shred of guilt that he's the cause of this, despite the fact that they've both agreed it's those Arasaka bastards to blame.

"There is no 'we'. Not anymore."

Right. He forgot. V's going to be back in his body in a moment, dying alone.

"No, Johnny, I... I thought about it, and there's been a change of plans."

\---------

The Afterlife was Rogue's, so that's where he brings her remains with Weyland's help. He keeps her pistol though, as one final reminder that they finally got their revenge on Smasher and that they're the ones who came out on top.

He doesn't want to linger, not after that, so he immediately returns to V's- No, yours, a small voice that sounds suspiciously like the recently deceased reminds him- apartment and passes out for the next twenty four hours.

\---------

"Again, not following."

V rolls his eyes, but doesn't speak. To Johnny, it looks like, despite having come up with his own plan, V's having a hard time saying it and he's stalling for time.

So he waits. 

\---------

When he wakes up, it's to just about a million messages on his phone and he starts having second thoughts.

V just had to make it harder for him by being the people's man, the most benevolent merc in Night City, huh?

Of course, he won't feel bad about not replying, hell, it's his new life and these people mean jack shit to him, but a promise is a promise, even if it's only his conscience (his voice, his body, his everything) that will nag at him.

\---------

"Body's yours." V says after what feels like an eternity of silence, "Under one condition."

Johnny, for the first time in his life, is speechless. He pushes down the guilt again, the thought that it's his biochip that made V make this decision, and asks.

"And what's that?"

"That you don't fuck over the people I care about."

\---------

He starts small and calls Judy first, because she's on holo and he won't have to deal with her blowing up in his face if it all goes wrong.

"Hey V!" Judy's cheerful voice cuts through the dial tone, "What's up?"

"Judy. Gotta tell you something." He starts, and watches as the woman’s expression shifts into something less positive. 

"V's gone, this is Johnny." 

The silence is palpable, and he watches as Judy stares ahead, blank and probably thinking. He realizes that she's pulled over when the rumbling engine in the background ceases and the scenery stops moving behind her.

"What do you mean gone?" She sounds like she's on the verge of crying or maybe shouting at him, barely holding herself back from doing either or both. 

"Means he's gone, in cyberspace with Alt and I'm in his body now." He doesn't care if she doesn't know the full story, he doesn't know how to explain, nor does he want to. Judy doesn't seem to know what to say, and just sits there in silence.

He sits with her, because it feels wrong to hang up, until she looks up and cuts the call after a half hearted goodbye.

Well, that went better than expected.

\---------

Panam and the Aldecaldos are less than happy to see him. 

Well, no, they were very inviting before he opened his mouth and admitted to not being V. Panam snapped at him, at V, at Saul, before she managed to calm down and access the situation. 

"We can bring him back, he's still in there, right?" Is the first thing she says after her tantrum, "We just have to find him."

"He's gone, kid." Johnny replies, even if he wishes that were true and he didn't have to deal with V's friends, "A part of Alt in cyberspace."

Panam sits down, and clasps her hands together, bringing them up to her face as she breathes heavily.

"Why?" Her voice is muffled against her hands when she speaks again, "Why? I told him I'd help him. He's part of the Aldecaldos, our family."

He shrugs, because how would he know what V was thinking when he made that decision? Despite living in his head, Johnny never really got a hang of his thought process, preferring to sneer off to the side at the outcome instead.

And now, he's the one here having to deal with the fallout of one of his decisions. Great job, V.

"When did this happen? Why didn't he just _ask for help-_ " Panam's still going on, and he wonders what V would've done in this situation. Well, V isn't here, it's Johnny.

"Don't think he wanted you to die for him." He supplies, earning himself a glare from the woman.

"So? He's our family." She spits out, "I told him we'd help, I'd do it for him if it meant helping him, but instead he just fucked off by himself without even telling me! And now..."

And now, he's not even here anymore. He knows that feeling.

"I need... Some time to think." Panam says, standing up as she refuses to look at him, as if just looking at him would hurt. “Thanks for taking the time to come, Johnny.”

Johnny's never been so glad to be asked to leave, so he does just that.

\---------

The woman, Misty, unnerves him just a bit, because she looks at him like she _knows_ when he walks into the shop.

“He’s gone, isn’t he?” She sounds calm as ever, shuffling the deck of tarot cards in her hand, “That’s what the cards meant: Not death but close, similar. I wasn’t sure earlier, but I know now.”

“Yeah.” It’s weird, because even though he’s been making the rounds, even though he’s supposed to be the one telling people that V’s gone, Misty saying it somehow makes it feel even more real. “Here because he wanted me to talk to his friends. Make sure no one’s left hangin’.” 

She nods, a smile on her lips.

“That’s V for you.” 

“That it is.” Johnny agrees, meandering towards the back so he can head towards the clinic. Misty follows and he figures that’s fine, a helping hand to handle the doc if he gets emotional. He’s still clumsy on that front, no experience dealing with breakdowns or emotions, but he likes to think that he’s trying after what V did for him.

It’s strange to be back at the ripperdoc’s. It’s where he sort of first came to being again, flickering in and out of cyberspace into the dingy operating space with V on the table. He had had no idea what was going on, but he knew he was angry, and that Arasaka was behind this, fucking with his head.

It’s also the place where it ended, in a sense. Where he dragged V after his meeting with that Arasaka bitch, and where he convinced V to let him take on Arasaka Tower with Rogue, their last real moment of peace together.

Viktor is sitting at his desk when they enter, and looks surprised to see them- Or maybe he’s surprised to see V’s body in such good health after what had just happened a few short days ago.

“Good to see you finally dragged yourself over for that check up, V. I was wondering when I’d see your face again.”

Misty sits herself down on the step, just like how she had done when he brought V here for the last time, looking up at Johnny. He sighs and repeats those words that he’s come to hate saying.

“About that. V’s gone, this is Johnny.” 

The ripperdoc pauses, before taking his glasses off and rubbing his temples with his hand.

“Would explain why you’re not crawling on my floor and coughing up blood everywhere, I suppose.” He says after a moment of silence, sounding composed, professional, which is a welcome change from the others.

“Guess so. The biochip changed V’s body so it works with me instead of him.” He feels uncomfortable saying it, especially like that.

“Let me give you a check up anyway, just to see if there’s anything wrong. You can never be too sure, considering how V was faring a few days ago.” Viktor stands up, but Johnny wants to leave instead, opening his mouth to refuse when a hand touches his shoulder, gently.

“I think you should.” Misty’s behind him and he curses internally. “Keep V’s body safe, right? Make sure neither of you are in any danger.” 

Fuck her for exploiting that. He relents and sits in the chair, letting Viktor fuss over him and do every damn check up possible before letting him go.

\---------

V’s apartment is so quiet without him. 

The guy’s usually sauntering around with the radio on, humming along to whatever’s playing, ignoring Johnny grumbling at him to stop.

He almost misses it, he thinks, as he lies in bed (the right way, it’s no wonder the guy has back pains when he sleeps like someone who has never seen a bed used correctly before). He knows that he won’t see him again, but still, he half expects to see him walk out of the shower, to refuse Johnny’s request for a cigarette even though he bought a pack to smoke. No more berating him for his stupid decisions, laughing when shit goes south for him.

Life without V. 

Johnny’s still not sure how to feel about it.

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you for reading!!! I kinda didn't know where I was going with this so I'm sorry if it feels all over the place. I just wanted to write something that's a bit less 'Johnny leaves all V's friends behind' because damn reading those messages that were left for me in the epilogue was kinda sad.
> 
> I kind of want to entertain an au/sequel to this where V breaks off from Alt and somehow returns, because Delamain had all his children too... So it might be possible? I actually also wanted to have Johnny be friends with everyone in the end? But I don't know if I'm committed enough to write everyone LOL I only wrote Judy, Panam, Vik, and Misty because they're more central characters everyone would've encountered and I didn't want to drag this on for too long since this fic is a spur of the moment thing. 
> 
> Feel free to leave a comment if you'd like a sequel! and um honestly if you want to talk about the game I would love to cry about the endings, so hmu!


End file.
